A 'smartphone', a new category of mobiles, is a mobile phone which not only handles your text messages and calls, but to an extent helps you manage your life and communications on the go. Emails, the internet, event and day to day planning, the lot.

After owning a cheap and cheerful mobile for a few months, I was due for an upgrade, and my research led me to purchase the Palm Pre. Aesthetically a very pleasing device, it fits very well in the hand, with a slightly curved back and comfortable size. My main reasons for purchasing it were the good price on o2, the intuitive operating system (webOS), and the good catalogue of free apps. Of course, I could have gone for the iPhone, but a quick comparison between the two has the Pre winning if what you're looking for is something that is good value for money, and a little different.

The phone itself is a joy to use. The slide out keyboard takes a little getting used to, with fairly small keys, but now I've used it for a while I can easily type at a fairly decent speed. The interface is simple and intuitive, and all the main functions you'd expect are there. When beginning using the phone, you can key in your Facebook details, and the phone will download all your contacts into your phone book, along with any phone numbers available. This has the instant advantage of giving you an address book synced to your real contacts, showing their photo and current status, if applicable. The phone gets even smarter with messaging, integrating e-mails, instant messages and text messages into one easily viewable stream, per contact.

Communications on the go are handled by great e-mail handling capabilities, and a fast browser, which has easy zooming and bookmarking features. I have yet to find a website which does not display properly on the Pre. Unfortunately the phone does not have a Flash player installed, but apparently this is on the way, and it should make the browser fully comprehensive.

If you've read bad things about the build quality of the phone, or of some perceived lack of apps or developers, then I'd recommend you reconsider. This is a solid smart phone with a very large offering of apps for most individuals. It's fast, easy to use, integrates with your social life, and most importantly, is free in the UK on o2.